1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus and a method for controlling the time and the place a job, such as printing, will be executed, and to a storage medium on which such a control program is stored.
2. Related Background Art
Conventionally, when information is printed a host apparatus, such as a computer, transmits to a printer print instructions accompanied by print data. The host apparatus also selects, from among a plurality of printers connected to a network, the printer that is to be used. And when information that is to be printed by a specific printer is also to be printed by another, different printer, the same information must be transmitted by the host computer to the other printer.
A specific printer, available on a network, prints information that is received from a plurality of host computers. The employment of an apparatus across a network is limited by the requirement that a password must be entered before the apparatus is used. However, the employment of a password is intended only to control whether the apparatus can be used by individual users. A control that requires the use of a password can not cope with a request such as that the performance of a process by a specific apparatus is to be inhibited because the processing capability of the apparatus is inadequate, there is a difference in standards, or the status of the apparatus is unsatisfactory. In addition, in an environment wherein an unspecified majority of users can employ an apparatus, it is not easy to inhibit the use by a specific user of a processing apparatus.
Furthermore, a host apparatus, such as a computer, must transmit a print instruction a printer when a desired print time has arrived.
Further, although a plurality of processes can be executed, in a system wherein a peripheral device, such as a printer, receives an instruction from a host computer and initiates processing under the control of the host computer, the execution control and management of the processing will be complicated if a specific process is to be performed only when an execution condition has been satisfied. Moreover, the management of the processing required to setup the process for a different device, and to execute the process when the execution condition has been satisfied, will also be complicated. And this complicated control must in particular be employed for the performance of a process that corresponds to the operation of a local apparatus and a process that is instructed by another apparatus.
It is, therefore, one objective of the present invention to provide for the performance of a process an apparatus and a method for providing additional information that is associated with the process.
It is another objective of the present invention to provide an apparatus and a method by which a specific apparatus can process target information stored in a different apparatus in the same manner as that target information is processed by the different apparatus.
It is an additional objective of the present invention to provide an apparatus and a method for easily and certainly rejecting a request for the performance of a process transmitted by a specific transmission source.
It is a further objective of the present invention to provide an apparatus and a method for performing processing at a time that is designated in advance.
It is a still further objective of the present invention to provide an apparatus and a method for easily setting up a process and for managing the execution of the process.
To achieve the above objectives, according to one aspect of the present invention, an information processing apparatus comprises:
input means for entering information; and
processing means for performing processing based on a process instruction that corresponds to the information entered by the input means,
wherein the process instruction includes the type of process and wherein the processing means performs a process of the type that is included in the process instruction.
According to another aspect of the present invention, an information processing method comprises:
an input step of entering information; and
a processing step of performing processing based on a process instruction that corresponds to the information entered at the input step,
wherein the process instruction includes the type of process and wherein a process of the type that is included in the process instruction is performed at the processing step.
According to an additional aspect of the present invention, provided is a storage medium on which is stored a program, which comprises:
an input step of entering information; and
a processing step of performing processing based on a process instruction that corresponds to the information entered at the input step,
wherein the process instruction includes the type of process and wherein a process of the type that is included in the process instruction is performed at the processing step.
In addition, to achieve the above described objectives, according to a further objective of the present invention, an information processing apparatus comprises:
print means for printing object information to be processed;
transmission means for transmitting the object information;
object information storage means for storing the object information;
display means for displaying a list of the object information that is stored in the object information storage means;
object information selection means for selecting from the information list object information to be processed;
apparatus designation means for designating a local apparatus or a different apparatus as an apparatus to print the object information; and
control means for, when the local apparatus is designated by the apparatus designation means, permitting the print means to print the object information that is selected by the selection means, and for, when the different apparatus is designated by the apparatus designation means, permitting the transmission means to transmit the object information selected by the selection means to the different apparatus in order to print the object information thereby.
According to still another objective of the present invention, an information processing method comprises:
a display step of displaying a list of object information to be processed, which is stored in an object information storage unit for storing the object information to be processed;
an object information selection step of selecting from the information list object information to be processed;
an apparatus designation step of designating a local apparatus or a different apparatus as an apparatus to print the object information;
a print step of, when the local apparatus is designated at the apparatus designation step, printing the object information that is selected at the selection step; and
a transmission step of, when the different apparatus is designated at the apparatus designation step, transmitting the object information selected at the selection step to the different apparatus in order to print the object information thereby.
According to a still further objective of the present invention, provided is a storage medium on which is stored a program, which comprises:
a display step of displaying a list of object information to be processed, which is stored in an object information storage unit for storing the object information to be processed;
an object information selection step of selecting from the information list object information to be processed;
an apparatus designation step of designating a local apparatus or a different apparatus as an apparatus to print the object information;
a print step of, when the local apparatus is designated at the apparatus designation step, printing the object information that is selected at the selection step; and
a transmission step of, when the different apparatus is designated at the apparatus designation step, transmitting the object information selected at the selection step to the different apparatus in order to print the object information thereby.
Furthermore, to achieve the above objectives, according to yet another aspect of the present invention, an information processing apparatus comprises:
object information reception means for receiving object information to be processed;
execution means for performing a process that corresponds to the object information received by the reception means;
storage means for registering a specific transmission source;
determination means for determining whether a transmission source for the object information that is received by the reception means matches a transmission source that is stored in the storage means; and
inhibition means for, when the determination means ascertains that the transmission sources match, inhibiting execution of the process by the execution means.
According to a yet additional aspect of the present invention, an information processing method comprises:
an object information reception step of receiving object information to be processed;
an execution step of performing a process that corresponds to the object information received at the reception step;
a determination step of determining whether a transmission source for the object information that is received at the reception step matches a transmission source that is stored in a transmission source storage unit; and
an inhibition step of, when it is ascertained at the determination step that the transmission sources match, inhibiting execution of the process at the execution step.
According to yet one further aspect of the present invention, provided is a storage medium on which is stored a program, which comprises:
an object information reception step of receiving object information to be processed;
an execution step of performing a process that corresponds to the object information received at the reception step;
a determination step of determining whether a transmission source for the object information that is received at the reception step matches a transmission source that is stored in a transmission source storage unit; and
an inhibition step of, when it is ascertained at the determination step that the transmission sources match, inhibiting execution of the process at the execution step.
Moreover, to achieve the above objectives, according to one more aspect of the present invention, an information processing apparatus comprises:
execution means for performing a process;
object information storage means for storing object information to be processed;
display means for displaying a list of object information to be processed that is stored in the object information storage means;
object information selection means for selecting from the object information list object information to be processed;
execution time designation means for designating a time for executing the object information that is selected;
storage control means for storing, in the object information storage means in association with the object information selected by the selection means, the time designated by the execution time designation means; and
execution control means for permitting the execution means to process the object information, which is stored in the object information storage means, at the time that is stored in the object information storage means in association with the object information.
According to still one more aspect of the present invention, an information processing method comprises:
a display step of displaying a list of object information to be processed that is stored in an object information storage unit for storing the object information;
an object information selection step of selecting from the object information list object information to be processed;
an execution time designation step of designating a time for executing the object information that is selected;
a storage step of storing, in the object information storage unit in association with the object information selected at the selection step, the time designated at the execution time designation step; and
an execution step of processing the object information, which is stored in the object information storage unit, at the time that is stored in the object information storage unit in association with the object information.
According to yet one more aspect of the present invention, provided is a storage medium on which is stored a program, which comprises:
a display step of displaying a list of object information to be processed that is stored in an object information storage unit for storing the object information;
an object information selection step of selecting from the object information list object information to be processed;
an execution time designation step of designating a time for executing the object information that is selected;
a storage step of storing, in the object information storage unit in association with the object information selected at the selection step, the time designated at the execution time designation step; and
an execution step of processing the object information, which is stored in the object information storage unit, at the time that is stored in the object information storage unit in association with the object information.
Further, to achieve the above described objectives, according to also an aspect, an information processing apparatus comprises:
client means for, in accordance with an operation initiated by a user, generating a request and transmitting the request, and for receiving operation screen information and providing the operation screen information for the user;
server means for interpreting the request and adding object information to be processed to a database, and for generating operation screen information and transmitting the operation screen information to the client means; and
execution means for monitoring the database, and for detecting object information that can be processed and for processing the object information.
According to also another aspect of the present invention, an information processing method comprises the steps of:
a client unit generating a request in accordance with an operation initiating by a user and transmitting the request to a server unit;
the server unit interpreting the request and adding object information to a database;
the server unit generating and transmitting operation screen information to the client unit;
the client unit receiving the operation screen information and providing the operation screen information for the user; and
an execution unit monitoring the database to detect object information that can be processed, and processing the object information.
According to also an additional aspect, provided is a storage medium on which are stored programs, the programs comprising:
a client program for, in accordance with an operation initiated by a user, generating a request and transmitting the request, and for receiving operation screen information and providing the operation screen information for the user;
a server program for interpreting the request and adding object information to be processed to a database, and for generating operation screen information and transmitting the operation screen information to the client program; and
an execution program for monitoring the database, and for detecting object information that can be processed and for processing the object information.
Other objectives and advantages, in addition to those discussed above, will become apparent to those skilled in the art during the course of the description of a preferred embodiment of the invention that follows. In the description, reference is made to accompanying drawings, which form a part of the description and which illustrate an example of the invention. The presentation of such an example, however, does not constitute an exhaustive recital of the various possible embodiments of the invention, and therefore, to determine the scope of the invention reference should be made to the claims that follow.